Monday, November 08, 2010

The Importance of Engineering

Engineering is not only the vowel that leads to the convenient (if controversial) acronym for STEM, it's also the discipline that glues the consonants together. At the same time, it's not something that students--and adults--typically engage with in their everyday life. This means that though professional engineers often have high-paying, interesting jobs, educators need to make an extra effort to expose students to opportunities in engineering.

The National Academy of Sciences recently published a study on the uncertainty of K-12 engineering standards in the United States. It is true that engineering has long been taught and learned exclusively or primarily in higher education, with introductory science and math classes in K-12 providing the basic skills necessary for professional engineers to complete their college degrees. But basic engineering skills can be necessary or useful for other professions that don't require advanced degrees--like work in manufacturing and construction.